1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a product sampler package for presenting a fluid product sampler in a manner which complies with postal regulations for insertion in magazines, catalogs, periodicals, etc. under the subscription or periodicals rate classification for delivery to consumers through the mail system. The product sampler may contain a product having a fluid or volatile base such as water or other organic solvent. Alternatively, the product sampler may be used to provide samples of a powder, wax, or similarly fluid products. Examples of such products include, for example, liquid cosmetics, lotions, creams, gels, fragrances, ointments, etc.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many manufacturers of cosmetics, toiletries, beauty and skincare products, etc. commonly promote their products by distributing free samples or applications to current or potential consumers with the goal of building and/or maintaining customer loyalty for the products or product lines. One method of distributing such samples has been to give them to potential customers in a store in which the product is sold. A further reaching, more effective method has been to mail the sampler packages to a targeted audience through the U.S. Postal Service (USPS). Typically, the samplers are mailed as inserts in brochures, catalogs, magazines, or the like.
For distribution through the USPS, the samplers can be mailed either under a non-discounted rate classification or under a more economical periodical/subscription rate classification. To qualify for classification under the subscription rate, each sampler package must comply with certain guidelines set by the USPS. For example, certain of these guidelines specify that the unit must be firmly affixed to a carrier card or to a page of the periodical, and that the sampler must be designed to allow the product to be tested while still in the periodical.
In addition to the requirements set by the USPS, it is generally desirable that the sampler packages be non-bulky for distribution as inserts and also flexible enough to avoid breakage in shipment or storage yet rigid enough to facilitate high speed insertion into the carrier medium. Further, each sampler unit preferably provides approximately one unit dose of the product in an attractive display having artwork or informational copy print printed thereon while providing a transparent or translucent cover film. A sampler package having these aesthetic features will encourage the potential customer to sample the product and enable the consumer to view the actual product to thereby choose the preferred shade or color prior to opening the package.
The advertising sampler disclosed in Parrotta et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,072,831 is an example of a prior art package which has been used for cosmetic sampling purposes. A relatively thin paste-like transfer layer of a cosmetic product is coated onto a substrate affixed to a carrier card which can be inserted into magazines and catalogues for mass distribution. The product sample is covered by a transparent protective film which is held in place by a glue strip.
The sampler package of Parrotta is generally suitable for products having a substantially solid or highly viscous consistency such as eyeshadow, pressed powder, and lipstick, as the nature of these products allows for a long shelf life. Specifically, the types of cosmetic preparations listed above are capable of remaining compositionally stable under normal indoor environmental conditions for a relatively long period of time. Therefore, the integrity of such product samples can be readily sustained in such a sampler package until use by a consumer without concern about the materials or sealing methods used.
When the product to be sampled is more fluid and/or volatile such as a liquid or gel, on the other hand, prior art cosmetic samplers such as that of Parrotta fail to provide sufficient product longevity. In designing a sampler package for a fluid or volatile product, it is especially important to seal the package in a manner which prevents leakage and rapid evaporation of the product, and also to include an effective barrier layer in the material containing the product sample to maintain the compositional integrity of the product for the desired shelf-life of the samplers.
Several attempts have been made to produce a better sampler package to retain fluid products, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,391,420 and 5,622,263 to Bootman et al. and Greenland, respectively. These samplers provide hermetically sealed packages which include either a metallized barrier layer such as foil or a polymeric barrier layer such as polyethylene or a PVDC coated film for the distribution of fluid or volatile products.
Foil is known to be the most effective type of flexible barrier film against moisture and vapor transmission. Since the foil layer necessarily renders the package opaque, however, samplers which seal the product in foil laminates are thus most suitable for sampling products such as perfumes or creams, where the color or appearance of the product being sampled does not significantly affect the likelihood of purchase of the product.
On the other hand, the nature of certain cosmetics, e.g. foundation, is such that a consumer will only consider sampling, and subsequently purchasing, the cosmetic if the shade matches her skin tone or the product is otherwise to her liking. With these products, it is especially important that the sampler package provide a means for a consumer to view the product color or texture before actually opening the unit so as to facilitate selection of the appropriate color.
The polymeric barrier layers such as those disclosed in Bootman and Greenland above can be transparent, so that when used to form the package, the actual product can be viewed through the package without opening the package. However, the polyethylene or PVDC coated film of Bootman and Greenland, while more effective than many other known types of transparent films as barriers against moisture and vapor transmission, do not provide a sufficiently long shelf-life for practical distribution of fluid product samples. Since the samplers may be placed in storage or display for a significant amount of time before being distributed to or obtained by a consumer, and may thereafter be set aside for an additional length of time before use, a liquid product sample contained in one of these samplers has a tendency to substantially dry up often before the consumer has an opportunity to sample the product.
Another type of transparent film known to be used as a moisture barrier is a SiOx coating which has a much lower moisture vapor transmission rate than conventional films such as those mentioned previously and including PVDC coated films. Presently, SiOx is commonly used as a coating on PET bottles or containers. This material, however, is similar to a coating of glass, and is too rigid for use in insert-type cosmetic sampler packages which must withstand a certain degree of flexing and bending during handling. When the silane material is folded or flexed, the moisture vapor barrier properties are severely compromised due to fracturing or cracking of the silane coating.
As demonstrated herein, none of the prior art sampler packages allow a consumer to view the actual product through the packaging while maintaining the compositional integrity of a fluid product sample for a satisfactory time period.